Photo: kun.uz
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will provide Uzbekistan with €60 million in loans to support micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) across the country, the bank’s press service reported.
The funds will be allocated through Hamkorbank, one of Uzbekistan’s largest private banks providing business loans.
“MSMEs play a key role in Uzbekistan’s economy, generating around half of the country’s gross domestic product and providing employment for nearly 80% of the working-age population. Supporting these enterprises is one of EBRD’s strategic priorities,” the European financial institution stated.
The EBRD has worked with Uzbekistan since the early 1990s. Between 2007 and 2017, cooperation was largely dormant, with the bank focusing only on maintaining its existing investment portfolio. The EBRD resumed its presence in Uzbekistan in autumn 2017 following Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s rise to power. In October 2018, the bank adopted a strategy for Uzbekistan, outlining cooperation priorities for the following five years in line with the government’s reforms. A year later, the EBRD opened a second office in Andijan to support the republic’s most densely populated region.
Today, the EBRD’s investment portfolio in Uzbekistan includes 193 projects totaling more than €5.6 billion (over $6.5 billion). In June 2025, the bank and the Uzbek government agreed to increase the portfolio by $1.1 billion, bringing the total to $6.6 billion. Most of these funds are aimed at developing the private sector. For the fifth consecutive year, Uzbekistan remains the largest recipient of EBRD investment in Central Asia.
